Sports/Olympics / 2008 BEIJING OLYMPICS

WHO sets health goals for Beijing Games
By Zhang Feng (China Daily)
Updated: 2006-05-18 09:09

"We will do our best, depending on our surveillance system, to monitor the symptoms of any infectious diseases, quickly issue alarms and take effective emergency response measures," said Wang Yu, director of Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.

China has established the world's biggest reporting system for dozens of infectious diseases, Wang said, before adding that in the coming two years, it will become an increasingly urgent task for China to set up a surveillance system and an information-sharing network.

Beijing has already established a comprehensive prevention and control system, including surveillance and response, to contain new or major outbreaks of infectious diseases, said Liang Wannian, deputy director of Beijing Health Bureau.

Meanwhile, an emergency medical rescue network that covers both urban and rural areas of Beijing has begun to take shape, Liang said.

As well as infectious disease prevention, China has also begun to work comprehensively in various public health fields.

For example, the Organizing Committee of Beijing Olympic Games has already selected farming and breeding bases to provide foods for the Games, said Dai Jianping, deputy director of Department of Medical and Health Services of the organizing committee.

In these bases, strict tests and experiments are being done on livestock and vegetables to ensure athletes and visitors are offered the highest quality food available.


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